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MIAMI – The shot wasn’t in the air for more than a few seconds, but for the collection of green-clad players watching, it felt like an eternity. For three quarters the Celtics had fended off a relentless, never-ending Heat charge, battling as a 15-point first quarter lead was whittled to six at the end of the second, and as a 12-point edge with 3 ½ minutes to play was sliced to two. Now there they were, 17 seconds on the clock, up two, a trip to the Finals on the line and Jimmy Butler, the latest villain in Boston’s long history of them, was pulling up from three.
“I was hoping to God,” Jaylen Brown said, his voice trailing off.
